Of Love and War: The Eighth Horcrux
by xxbubblelovexx
Summary: When a new girl joins Hogwarts in James S. Potter's sixth year, so do many odd things. For one, mysterious attacks are happening all over the country. And second...James might just be falling in love - something he swore would never happen. I of V
1. Prologue

**Of Love and War**

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**The Eighth Horcrux  
By xxbubblelovexx**

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**_Author's Note ~ Okay, so I'm giving a shot at the Eighth Horcrux idea and the era Harry Potter's children had to grow up in. So I really hope you like it. Oh, and please review! It means a lot to hear my readers thoughts so just a quick note would be great, thanks!_**

**_And a few more things that I should add..._**

**_The two people that are with the main character are Maya Lestrange and Lord Voldemort. Maya is Bellatrix's daughter. And don't worry, I did my research: Bella doesn't have a daughter in the Harry Potter series. Yes, I know. But I had to have someone that helped Voldemort, and since Bellatrix is dead and was his most faithful follower, I thought it would be a good idea to have her daughter follow in her mother's footsteps._**

**_Okay, that's all! Enjoy! *And remember to review!*_**

**_Disclaimer: I own nothing related to Harry Potter except for the characters that I made up. All credit goes to the brilliant J.K. Rowling!_**

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**Prologue**

_I writhed on the floor in pain next to the huge glowing cauldron. Every memory I had was passing though my head with alarming speed – from the moment I turned fifteen back to when I turned eleven. I couldn't focus on them long enough because of the pure agony I was going through. The taste of blood was in my mouth, and I knew that in my attempts to not scream and beg for death by biting my tongue, I had bit through the pink flesh. There might have been someone standing in the shadows of the cold room I was in, but I couldn't be sure nor did I care. I just wanted the pain to stop and since they were just watching me roll in pain, they meant nothing to me._

_Slowly – very slowly – the pain receded. My entire body was sore and I couldn't move a muscle. My every breath came out shallow and ragged; I couldn't get enough air. I watched as the pale man in the shadows came forward, my chest heaving. I wanted to scream and run as far away as possible and go home when I saw his horrifying, snakelike face, but my bones felt broken and twisted and I couldn't find the strength to even move a single finger when I was using it all to get gasps of air._

_As he came closer, I didn't care if he had just watched me cry and writhe in pain, I just wanted help. But I couldn't open my mouth and no sound could be made._

_Hi black robes hung on his white, bony body while he took each step towards me. He had red, blood red, eyes that sent waves of fear though me._

_He stared at me for what seemed like hours, observing me in my pitiful state, twisting and turning his head for a different view. I couldn't take his burning gaze anymore, but there was nothing I could do but wait for my ability to move to return while he stared at me._

_Suddenly, doors opened from somewhere I couldn't see and light poured in. That was when I realized how dark it had been before. But it didn't last long because soon they were closed and I heard footsteps approaching us. The pale man's eyes never left me though, even when the new arrival appeared by his side._

_The woman had crazy dark hair that stuck up in all directions all the way down to her waist. Her gaunt face was incredibly ashen, and her eyes were big, never blinking. She glanced down at my body on the floor once before returning to the man beside her who was still examining me. "M-Master… My lord…is the transformation…complete?" she whispered, but the words echoed off the walls._

_"Yes, Maya, it is complete," he rasped, finally looking to the woman. "But you must take her to your sister to heal her bones. You need to be able to begin teaching her as soon as possible. Her memory will soon return if we do not replace it with something else soon."_

_She nodded earnestly. "But…how do I teach her? She's a mudblood, my lord!"_

_"As far as the rest of the world is concerned, Maya, she is a pureblood and your daughter," he stated clearly and firmly. "She has magic in her blood, it just hasn't been triggered. Do you swear you will teach her, Lestrange?"_

_"Of course, my lord."_

_"Then leave. A new era is upon us, and she is our key to victory this time. There is no time to waste."_


	2. New Girl On The Train

**Of Love and War**

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**The Eighth Horcrux  
By xxbubblelovexx**

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**Chapter 1 - New Girl On The Train**

Looking both ways for any witnesses, I rounded the corner, making sure my steps were quiet and couldn't be heard the dead silence of the night. Down the hall, I could hear my brother, Albus's snores that drifted down the hallway to me. I smiled to myself, but continued on my way up the hall to my destination – Lily's room.

I was on a mission – Operation: Sweet, Sweet Revenge.

I groaned inwardly. I could still feel the wet, stickiness of the slime from this morning when I fallen (_pushed_ to be more exact) out of bed this morning and into a conveniently placed tub full of some unknown substance. It had taken hours to get it all out of my hair and off of me; pretty much wasted my entire day that I had planned on using for heading out to town with my friends. But _no_, Lily decided she could prank me back for turning her hair a bright shade of green and purple and pink two days ago because I replaced her shampoo with dye. Did she not have a sense of humor or something? And where had she gotten the slime anyway? This thought puzzled me until I reached the door of her bedroom, then I was all business again.

Pushing the door open, slightly flinching when it creaked, I slid into the dark room. Her bed was on the far wall and I could see her sleeping body under the covers, breathing softly. I narrowed my eyes, anticipating the morning when she would scream with horror and eventually anger, and nearly laughed at the thought. But I pulled myself together, and got back to work.

I couldn't wait for the next morning.

* * *

"JAMES SIRIUS POTTER!"

The screech echoed throughout the house (and I bet most of the neighborhood heard it too) down to where I was eating breakfast with Albus and my mum and dad. My mum immediately through me a look that told me I was in some deep trouble this time, and my dad just shook his head.

No one made to move from the table because we knew that any second now… Ah, right on time.

Lily burst into the kitchen, her face flushed with anger, and Albus and I burst into laughter. We did this because not only was her hair a _brighter_ shade of green and purple and pink and sticking straight up in the air, but her head was now three times the size it was before she went to sleep last night.

"I know you did this!" she cried, pointing an accusing finger at me while I clutched my sides from laughing so hard. "Fix it! Fix it now!"

I tried to answer, but I couldn't stop laughing, so I just shook my head.

She growled and almost lunged for me (most likely to throttle me), but my mum jumped up just in time and grabbed her from behind to keep her from starting a fight. "Calm down, Lily! It'll be okay. I'll fix this, okay!" Then she turned to me, and I quivered under her angry gaze. "James Sirius Potter," she said quietly, trying not to blow up on me. "You… You…"

"Don't worry about it, Ginny," my dad said quietly, getting up from his seat at the table and walking over to me and placing a firm hand on my shoulder. "I'll take of it. You just go and fix her."

My mum nodded, and guided Lily up the stairs to the bathroom. All the while, I heard Lily crying, "But I'm supposed to meet Justin today! How am I supposed to see him looking like _this!_"

I snickered a bit into my hand, but immediately stopped when my dad cleared his throat and sent Albus out of the kitchen, who on his way out gave me a thumbs up. Gulping loudly, I avoided any eye contact with my dad, suddenly very interested in the uneaten waffles on my plate.

"How many times," he sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "How many times do we have to tell you using magic on your siblings is _not_ acceptable in this house? You're seventeen, now, James! I would have thought you'd have matured a bit by now!"

I let my eyes meet his before looking to the ceiling quickly. "Aw, come on, Dad. She pushed me into…I don't even know what…yesterday morning! You can't expect me to just sit around and let that pass!"

"Yes, I can, son, and I do," he said plainly, pulling a seat over to take a seat in front of me. "That's what being an official adult in this world means, and it's time you learned it. Sometimes you have to let things go because it's just not worth the trouble or time. You just need to grow up, James Sirius. You'll be starting your seventh year of Hogwarts this year, and by the end, you'll be expected to be mature and responsible adult. If you don't learn that soon, you're going to have a hard time in this world."

I rolled my eyes at his speech. He didn't understand. _Hours_. It took me _hours_ to get that rubbish out of my hair. Did that mean nothing to him? "But, Dad-"

He cut me off by standing. "No, James. I don't care what Lily did. All I care about at this moment is you becoming a responsible wizard in this world. You can't live in this house forever, you know. You'll have to move out eventually, and get a job. That's next to impossible right now with the stuff you've been pulling off lately, and I demand you put a stop to it. A little is okay, but your mother and I don't want to deal with this on a daily basis."

I watched him leave the room, glaring the door when it swung shut. What a bunch of bole… Who cares if I'm irresponsible? Nobody. Last time I checked, everyone at Hogwarts loved me. And that wasn't about to change just because my dad thought I wasn't mature enough.

Sure, at some points of his speech he had a point. I didn't need to react to everything, so I guess I could cut back on pranking Lily and the kids at school… But not completely. I had a reputation to uphold, of course, and I couldn't just leave my cousin Fred and my friends in the dust. They needed me. Without me, we wouldn't be the Second Generation Marauders.

A smile crept onto my face at the thought of our group. It had all started back in third year when I snuck into my father's desk drawers and found an odd map – the Marauder's Map. It was a prankster's _dream_ to hold that map. It held every secret of the Hogwarts, every passage way unknown to even the Headmaster, and showed every student and teacher and person in the school and what they were doing. And ever since that day when the ancient parchment touched my fingers, my group of four friends and I have called ourselves the Second Generation Marauders. The odd thing is, though, people actually call us that…

Memories from the past years with my friends floated in and out of my mind, leaving me with a dazed smile on my face until I snapped out of my reverie and realized I had five days until I headed back. Pure joy filled me and I ran up to my bedroom, leaving my unfinished breakfast on the table, and got to packing, completely forgetting about the previous conversation with my father.

* * *

I waved my goodbye to my mother and father out the window of the Hogwarts Express just as the train began pulling out of the station, with Albus and Lily waving with me. When we turned the corner, we began looking for a compartment. Lily went off to find her boyfriend Justin, and her fourth year friends; Albus stayed with me for awhile until he saw his friends sitting in a compartment together and quickly left me by my lonesome. After saying a quick hello to his sixth year friends, I continued looking for my three friends so we could get on with planning the first prank of the year.

I pushed past the people who were also still looking for compartments, muttering hello's here and there when I saw someone I knew (which was practically everybody), nearly tripping a few times until finally it happened – I fell.

And I didn't just fall on anything. No, I fell on a _girl._ I squished the air out of her! I tripped over – and I hate to admit this – my foot just as I bumped into her, and tried to steady us both but I guess gravity had a different idea. We fell onto the ground in a heap, me completely covering her and her with the wind knocked out of her.

"_Shit,_" I breathed, trying to get off of her as fast as possible so she could breathe. "I'm so sorry. Are you okay?" I asked, sticking out a hand to help her up.

She took it, still trying to regain her posture and breath, but she smiled nevertheless. "U-Uh, yeah, I'm fine," she said.

"Are you sure?" I said, looking her in the face to make sure she wasn't lying.

And then she met my gaze, and something dawned on her. "Oh!" she gasped, taking a step backwards in surprise.

I eyed her curiously, not sure if this was a sign I had hurt her or not.

"Y-You're…James Potter! Harry Potter's son!" she said, quietly as if it were a secret, which it most certainly was not.

When the words left her mouth, I almost felt disappointed. It was always the same. I was always going to be James Potter, Harry Potter's son. When would I ever grow out of my father's shadow? "Yes," I sighed, shoving my hands into my pockets.

She smiled. "Pleasure," she said, sticking out a hand for me to shake. "I'm Isabelle. Isabelle Lawrence."

My jaw almost fell on the floor between us in shock. No questions? None? No questions about my father and the war? "Er, pleasure's mine?"

She smiled again, and I noticed for the first time how pretty that smile was and how lucky I was that she smiled so much. "I'm transferring to Hogwarts this year, seventh year."

And my day just got that much brighter. "Really? I'm a seventh year, you know. Maybe I'll-I mean we'll get lucky, and you'll be a Gryffindor."

"Maybe," she said. "That would be wonderful. Well, it's been a pleasure meeting you, James Potter, but I really should be going… I still need to find a compartment…"

"Why don't you join my friends and me?" I blurted before thinking. Then I internally slapped myself in the face, knowing what trouble this would cause… "I mean…if you want to… You don't have to. I was just…er…" I backtracked, fumbling around for words.

Her smile widened. "I'd love to! Let's go. It'll be great to know a few people before we start…"

_Shit…_ I thought, already anticipating the annoying remarks from my friends. I lead her down the train, hoping to find my group in the same compartment as always. And I wasn't disappointed. "Here we are…" I opened the door, and immediately smiled nervously at my three friends, whom shoved what I presumed to be the map into Fred's pockets.

"James! Buddy, old pal… Great to see you. And whose this?" Fred patted my shoulder, and looked at Isabelle expectantly, with a smile on his face. I knew that smile. It was the smile I always saw on his face when he saw something he liked. And right now that something was Isabelle Lawrence.

"Isabelle Lawrence," she said, shaking his hand. "I'm a new student. I've been homeschooled my whole life."

"Really? Well, take a seat, Izzy – you don't mind if I call you that, right? Good," he said, grinning like a fool, and patting the seating the seat across from him for her to sit. "This is Jared Babson, our crazy know-it-all, and this young man here is our Dobby. Dobby Longbottom, Transfiguration genius and one hell of a guy. And, last but most definitely not least, yours truly – Fred Weasley the Second. Gryffindor Beater extraordinaire and the sexiest man this world has ever laid eyes upon." He winked at the girl who was laughing slightly, but rolling her eyes at my friend's stupidity. At least she wasn't an airhead like most girls.

I huffed angrily but no one noticed, and I took a seat by the window next to my friend Dobby Longbottom, who grinned and we begun talking about our summers before he turned back to Fred and Jared Babson telling Isabelle everything there was to know about Hogwarts.

I watched them all, brooding, for awhile, and noticing every little thing about the new girl. Her dusty brown hair fell past her shoulders in perfect curls that were kind of frizzy but didn't make her look bad. She had amazing big curious green eyes that always lit up when she learned something new, and her smile had a way of brightening the room, even my mood. She had fair skin with tinge of pink on her cheeks. She had a slender body, with curves in all the right places, and dressed modestly, unlike a lot of the girls that I knew. She was a beauty, a different kind of beauty from any other girl I had seen at our school. I was loving it.

I also noticed different things about her. She was curious about everything, not afraid to ask _why_. She bit her bottom lip while she considered something or thought deeply. She wasn't stupid either. Whenever Fred tried to pull something stupid (like at Hogwarts, everybody was friends and it wasn't a big deal to get dressed together), she would just raise her brows and snort, telling him to dream on. She was brilliant and interesting, never just taking someone's word for something. She questioned everything. She wanted explanations and answers, even though magic really didn't have an explanation or an answer. Whenever she stopped talking, I was begging silently for her to continue so I could listen to her voice more. And I could see it in my friends' eyes too – they were amazed by this girl just as much as I was.

My stomach growled, as did Fred's and we looked at each other with wide grins.

"Five, four, three, two…" Fred said, counting down on his fingers.

"Trolley! Would you like something from the trolley, dears?" a kind old lady said into our open compartment.

**Isabelle P.O.V.**

"I'll take…some ice mice, chocolate frogs, and acid pops," Fred said, but then deliberated this for a moment and shook his head. "Actually, I think I'll just stick with ice mice and chocolate frogs, and get cauldron cakes instead…"

James sat in his corner, laughing silently at Fred as if remembering something very funny, as I stood behind Fred waiting to buy my sweets.

"And what can I get for you, dear?" the sweet lady asked when Fred returned to his seat.

I looked at the trolley for a moment before deciding. "Erm, I'll have a chocolate frog and-Oof!" I grunted and squealed when the train jolted, taking a big fall and landing on something hard but soft and warm.

I groaned, squeezing my eyes shut, but then snapped them open to see what I fell on. Or, in this case, _who_ I fell on. I was lying on top of a boy, who appeared to be my age, with blondish hair that swept across his face in a very appealing way just above his shockingly blue eyes.

"Oh!" I gasped, trying my best to get off of him as fast as possible. "I'm so sorry! I must have lost my balance! Are you alright?"

He rubbed his head while standing up, but nonetheless, shot me a brilliant smile, revealing a mouth of perfect teeth. "Just peachy." He laughed. "Don't worry about it; happens all the time."

Relieved, I found myself smiling back.

"Hey, I don't think I've seen you around before… New?" he said, narrowing those amazing eyes at me curiously.

I nodded. "I've been homeschooled for ages, but I finally convinced my mum to let me have at least one school year where I could be a normal teenager."

He laughed. "Homeschooled, eh? Well, it's been a pleasure meeting you…?"

"Isabelle Lawrence."

"Daniel Parker. It's been a pleasure meeting you, Miss Lawrence. Here, why don't I pay for those for you?" he said, handing the trolley lady four sickles for my sweets.

I blushed slightly at the gesture. "Oh, you really needn't have done that…"

"But it's the least I can do after that unfortunate fall," he said, flashing me a smile.

"That fall was not your fault, Mr. Parker," I said, trying my best not to melt under his gaze.

"You caught me." He threw his arms up. "I guess I just wanted to pay for pretty girl's candy." Winking, he handed me the candy.

My face reddened deeply from the compliment. "Oh, well thank-"

"You alright, Izzy?" James popped his head out of the compartment door that had closed from the jolt a few minutes ago. "I thought I heard you fall… Oh. I see you've met Parker." His face hardened, and I thought I saw something close to jealousy or hatred flash in his eyes, but in the next moment it was gone and I supposed I'd imagined it.

"Potter," Daniel said, returning the same icy stare in which he was receiving.

I was confused, but did not say anything on their odd behavior. "Oh, James, I did fall, but Daniel here was nice enough to let me fall on him," I said, smiling at Daniel, but he did not look at me. He was still glaring at James.

"Come on, Isabelle, we're almost to Hogwarts," James said, not acknowledging my previous statement. "And we still need to change into our robes."

I furrowed my eyes in confusion, but followed him back into the compartment anyway, sending Daniel one last smile before closing the door.

"What was _that_ all about?" I said as soon as I heard the door click.

"What was what all about?" he said, digging through his luggage for his robes.

"That! I could have sworn the train got ten degrees cooler!"

He snorted. "Oh, please, Isabelle. Parker and I have nothing against each other."

The other three boys in the compartment guffawed loudly, clutching their sides.

"Come off it, mate! You've hated the bloke ever since first year!" Fred gasped. "Don't even try and act like you two are the best of mates! You aren't fooling anybody!"

"I'm surprised Jamsie here didn't hex him into next week," Jared said, shaking his head. "You looked downright pissed when you came back in!"

I stared at the lot of them laughing hysterically at James, who was clenching his robes in his hands. "You hate him?"

He huffed but didn't answer the question, instead looking at Dobby expectantly.

"First year, Parker set James' new broom on fire just before Gryffindor's big game…" Dobby started.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," I interrupted. "First year? You told me only second years and older can join the team!"

"True, true, my lovely lady," said Fred. "But our Jamsie is the youngest to join the team since his father!"

"Merlin, really?" I said in, eyes wide with awe. "That's amazing, James!"

He grinned a little, but continued to stand awkwardly in the middle of the compartment across from where I stood.

"Anyway… Parker set James' brand new Firebolt 3000 on fire the day before Gryffindor's game against Slytherin," Dobby said, a dark look shadowing his eyes. "It was our team's secret weapon to win, but somehow the little git found out and set it on fire, and James had to use one of the school's horrible ones." He shook his head in sorrow. "That was the first game in five years that Gryffindor lost… Seekers can't possibly catch the Snitch on a Nimbus… Just not possible…"

The compartment went silent, as if the boys had silently agreed to give a moment of silence to the unfortunate defeat six years ago. I rolled my eyes at their solemn faces, and waited for someone to break the silence.

When no one did, I cleared my throat and looked James expectantly. "So you hate him because of a stupid game?"

Dobby gasped. "Stupid…game?!" he said, as if he couldn't quite comprehend the words in the same sentence. "What is _wrong_ with her?" he whispered loudly to Jared and Fred, who just shrugged, eyes wide.

"I don't _hate_ him because of a game!" James said. "He just…bugs me. That's all."

I snorted. "You're just the epitome of maturity, aren't you?" I said, using my gift of dry sarcasm that I'd gotten from my mother.

He flinched, and for a moment, he looked like he was off in a faraway place. I must have touched a nerve… But before I could say something, he shook his head, and looked at me. "Whatever, it doesn't matter, does it? Now, come on, guys, let's leave so she can change…" he said, pushing past me and leading the others out.

I sighed when the door clicked behind me, and got my robes out of my trunk, trying to figure out why there was so much hostility between James and Daniel. There had to be something more there… You can't just _hate_ somebody with that much passion just because they _bug_ you. And the hatred was emitting from both of them when I had been standing between them both; it made me nervous. They hated each other for some reason, and I was going to find out why, no matter what.

* * *

"Lawrence, Isabelle!"

I jumped a little when I heard my name called, but regained my posture quickly before ascending the stairs to where the Sorting Hat sat on a stool, leaving all the tiny first years behind. Yes, I know. I had to be sorted with the first years. It was kind of embarrassing, you know, being the tallest one in the group of eleven year olds, but it also made me feel tall so I guess there is a silver lining to everything…

The hat was placed on my head, and I waited, eyes closed, for it to decide, crossing my fingers for Gryffindor. The last thing I expected however, was for a voice to appear in my head.

_Hmm, interesting… Very interesting mind… Brave as they get, I can see… And very, very bright. That intelligence will make for a great Ravenclaw. But not the right place for _you_… Loyal and trustworthy… But Hufflepuff is not the place for you… And Slytherin…perhaps you could do well in there… So which to choose, which to choose… Gryffindor or Slytherin…_ The hat said in my head.

_Gryffindor… Please put me in Gryffindor!_ I pleaded, crossing my fingers tightly and cutting off circulation.

_Ah, Gryffindor you say? The house for the noble and brave? Do you believe you'll do well in there? Because Slytherin is also the ideal house for you… I can see it in your heart and mind… Hmm, but…very well… _"GRYFFINDOR!!!"

I let out a sigh of relief, and flew off the stool and ran to the cheering table to where James, Fred, Dobby, and Jared will all sitting and saving me a seat.

"Congratulations, Lawrence!" Fred said, clapping a big hand on my back. "Always knew you were Gryffindor material!"

I smiled brightly at him in return, then turned to James and gave him hug. "Looks like we got lucky!" I said, reminding him of our conversation before I met his friends.

"Looks like we did," he said, laughing. And then we turned back to the sorting, clapping and cheering loudly whenever an eleven year old was placed into our house.


	3. Seeing Red

**Of Love and War**

***~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~***

**The Eighth Horcrux  
By xxbubblelovexx

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**Chapter 2 - Seeing Red**

**Isabelle P.O.V.**

I took my seat in Potions, three weeks into the school year already, but the excitement whenever I smelled brewing Potions or heard the screeching of other students pulling out their chairs, reminding me I was being schooled with other students now, still hadn't worn off. I hadn't realized how lonely homeschooling had been until I had been interrupted six times by other students during assignments that first day. Maybe homeschooling, like my mother had told me, had made me smarter and pay more attention to the facts, but Hogwarts would definitely give me _life._

I smiled at my newly acquainted friend, Maisie Coggins, as I took out pieces of parchment, a quill and ink, and my _Advanced Potion Making_ and set them on the table in front of me. She smiled back, doing the same, and I silently remembered my first night here…

_After saying my goodnight's to James and the others, I made my way to my new dorm and opened the door, wondering who I would be sharing the room with. I was quite nervous, seeing as I was new and this was seventh year. Everybody knew everybody, except for me, and it was going to be hard to make new friends when everyone already had their group of friends sorted out. I could only hope for the best, though, and try my best to be lively and inviting and talkative. If I wasn't, well…I would be known as the silent oddball for the rest of the year, and I didn't want that, now, did I?_

_I walked in, apprehensively, and looked around to see the new faces. All three heads had swiveled towards the door, probably wondering who could possibly be entering their dorm. There was an exceptionally small girl that was painting her toenails on one bed, with shiny black hair that cascaded down her back. Her nose and cheeks were tinged with pink, but it went well with her pale skin, as did her light brown eyes. The second girl, who appeared to be doing some sort of exercise in the middle of the dorm, who had curly dark hair that was currently pulled back into a ponytail. She was frozen in the exercise position she had just started, while she looked at me curiously with narrowed eyes. And the last girl was sitting on another bed next to the small girl's, smiling at me warmly. She had auburn hair that fell just above her shoulders, and bright blue eyes that I could see from as far as I was standing._

"_Hello!" she chirped, cheerfully. "You must be the new seventh year girl Professor Longbottom told us about! It's Isabella Lawrence, right?"_

"Isabelle_," I corrected, smiling at the bubbly girl. "I just transferred…"_

"_Obviously…" the girl in the odd exercise position muttered before changing positions._

"_I used to be home schooled," I continued, as if I hadn't been interrupted._

"_Well, I'm Maise – Maisie Coggins," the auburn haired girl informed, then pointed to the girl painting her nails. "This is Olivia Jensen and this is-"_

"_I can introduce myself," the other girl snapped before turning to me. "I'm Robin Sikoff," she said, almost with a sneer before returning to her exercise._

"_Well, er, yeah," Maisie stammered, looking Robin oddly, before putting on her infectious smile again. "Why don't you tell us something about yourself so we can be officially acquainted? And vice-versa."_

_I nodded, laughing to myself at how cheesy that girl sounded. "Well…my favorite color is aqua…"_

"_No, no!" Maisie interrupted, waving her hands to stop me. "Something unique or whatever."_

"_Okay…" I said, furrowing my eyebrows. "Erm, I can play guitar and piano."_

"_Brilliant! You'll have to play for us sometime," she said before continuing. "I love the smell of lavender, I dance a lot, and I'm muggle-born. Your turn, Olivia!"_

"_Wait," I said, furrowing my brows after the last detail about Maisie. The term sounded familiar but… "Muggle-born? What's that?"_

_My question was only met with stunned silence and they stared at me with disbelieving eyes. I shifted uncomfortably under their gazes, realizing what a stupid question that had been – in their opinions. For me, however, I was completely clueless._

"_Are… Are you… What?" Olivia was the first to break the silence, gasping her astonishment. "Are you really…? No, no, you know what it means. Of course you do! You're just joking…with…us…?" she trailed off when I shook my head slowly and my cheeks burned from the oh-so-familiar burn of embarrassment. "Blimey, she really has no clue!" She widened her eyes at the other two, while they continued to stare at me in shock._

_I sighed. I really just wanted one of them to tell me what it meant quickly and get over with, not them spending the next good portion of our time staring at me like I was an alien. "Are you going to tell me or not?" I muttered irritably, crossing my arms across my chest and looking out the window._

_Robin snorted. "Rubbish… She's a pureblood; she has to know. I mean, honestly, what kind of pureblood witch doesn't know what 'muggle-born' means!" She looked at me skeptically then, and I felt as if this was supposed to be insulting, as if I wasn't a __**good-enough**__ pureblood. Too bad for her, I didn't care._

_Maisie eyed me, her smile M.I.A. as she deciphered if I truly didn't know what it meant. "She doesn't know," she finally said, and Robin let out another snort, like her point had somehow been proven – whatever point that may have been – and looked like she was to say something when Maisie continued on. "A muggle-born: a witch or wizard born in a non-magical family. In other words, someone born with the power of magic but their parents – and most likely their siblings too – are muggles."_

"_Do you need a definition of that word, too?" Robin sneered, pulling her hair out of the ponytail elastic and sitting on what I assumed to be her bed._

_I scowled, already not liking this girl, but didn't take the time to respond to her comment. Instead, I smiled thankfully at Maisie and took my spot on the only empty bed – the one that seemed the farthest from the others, but maybe it seemed to be that way at the other beds too, and the closest to the window. I could still feel the tinge of embarrassment on my cheeks when I realized they were still looking at me, making me feel dumber than Blast-Ended Newt. I tried not to fidget too much under their gazes, especially Robin's because I knew there would definitely be a comment on that later from her, but, not soon enough in my opinion, Maisie clapped her hands together._

"_Okay!" she said brightly, her usual smile back. "Now it's your turn, Olivia!"_

_Olivia looked at Maisie, first in confusion like she'd almost forgotten we were playing the game, but then the confusion was replaced by utter boredom. "Right… Well, I guess you could say I'm the best in Charms, and my boyfriend has been Jared Babson ever since sixth year."_

"_Oh, Jared!" I said, glad for the distraction from my previous moment of stupidity. "Jared Babson! Yeah, I rode in the same compartment as him on the way here, with him and his friends."_

_She nodded. "Yep, him and the rest of the Second Generation Marauders – James Potter II, Fred Weasley, Jared Babson, and Dobby Longbottom. The rowdiest, most arrogant, hottest boys in the school, but that's just what about every girl – unless they're blind – say. How I ended up with one of them, I may never know, but I'm stuck with him now." She shook her, laughing at herself quietly. Not in the oh-I'm-so-witty-and-hilarious kind of way, but in the oh-I-really-screwed-myself-but-I-don't-care-as-much-as-I-should kind of way._

"_Oh, yes!" Maisie piped up. "I heard about that little bump-in with you and James on the train! Actually, I think almost every girl has heard about it already… Oh, Isabelle, you're already making enemies with half of the female population of Hogwarts, aren't you? Professors not included."_

_I shrugged, not really getting what was so special about the Second Generation Marauders. Yes, they were nice guys. Yes, they were funny. And yes, they were pretty gorgeous, which was quite a feat. How many groups of guys do you come across every day? How many groups of guys, all equally hot and handsome, do you come across every day? But, really? I think Maisie was exaggerating. They were just __**guys**_**. **_Surely the girls at this school weren't completely ditzy enough to throw themselves at the boys. But when I voiced these thoughts aloud, they all laughed at the prospect._

"_Trust me, Isabelle – wait, can I just call you Izzy?" Olivia said, pausing._

"_Sure, wouldn't be the first."_

"_Great, okay, anyway… Trust me – after you've been here for a few more weeks, then you can rethink your thoughts and decide that for yourself." Maisie and Robin nodded in agreement with their friend. "And, if you ever date one for yourself, then we'll talk."_

_I nodded, kind of confused, but didn't say anything further and let Robin say something about herself (close family friend of the Potter's, a fair painter, and a lover of yoga, exercising for perfect spiritual insight as she put it) and then we all went to bed._

I smiled to myself, so glad I had been placed in Gryffindor with such nice people. _You're just lucky._ My mom's words from her last letter flitted to the front of my brain after I'd owled her about the house I was sorted into, my new friends (she seemed especially happy about meeting James Potter, but she's always had a thing about connections with people high-up in the magical world – kind of like my Potions professor, Professor Slughorn), etc. _Maybe I am just lucky…_ I thought to myself. I mean, I'd been placed in Gryffindor with these brilliant people, my professors already loved me, and, much to not only my surprise but a few others too, I'd already been asked to the first Hogsmeade trip of the year by three good-looking boys – a sixth year Ravenclaw, and two seventh year Gryffindors. But did that really count as luck? I was only placed in Gryffindor because apparently I was brave and loyal and smart enough to one; I hadn't given my professors any reason to hate me, anyway, so _luck_ didn't really fit in there; and as for the boys... I guess being attractive to the other sex could be considered luck by some people. But I did say no to all three of them, feeling bad when I saw their disappointed faces. I was just waiting for a certain someone to ask me – a certain blonde someone, whose name started with a _D_ and ended with an _aniel._ (For those of you who might still not know who that certain someone is, I suggest you find out if you were possibly dropped on your head when you were a baby.)

"Hello, Izzy!" Maisie greeted me, and I feared that maybe her face was frozen that way – with a smile, I mean. "Great day, isn't it? Perfect weather for Quidditch… Oh, I heard James Potter is holding tryouts for Gryffindor this Saturday. Didn't you say you were interested in joining the team?"

_Quidditch…_ It did sound interesting. I mean, I'd never played it before but I was alright on a broom and I had seen a game once when I was younger. Trying out wouldn't be that bad, anyway; mostly just for the fun of it and if I made the team, I made the team. I really wasn't as driven as a lot of the student body was when the game was brought up in conversation, like Robin and James and Dobby, for instance. Robin was a beater, as was Dobby, and James was the Gryffindor team's seeker. If you started up a convo about Quidditch, or just mentioned the Chudley Canons or Irish with the three of them around, you would never get a chance to speak again, much less hear. Once you got them started, there was nothing that could stop them unless it was time for lights out. It was actually quite scary to watch them when this happened, but usually the whole of Gryffindor would be sitting on the sidelines, watching them as if it were a movie.

"I might," I told her. "It would be fun to try out, but I doubt I would make the team. I've only ridden a broom a few times…"

"Well, were you alright on it?" she asked."

"I guess, yeah."

"Well, that's really all that matters then, right? Other than the fact that you have to be good for the position you're trying out for."

I shrugged, doodling a Lily on the corner of a piece of parchment.

"Do you know what position you would want?" she said, raising her brows.

"Not exactly… I guess chaser would be alright… Maybe keeper?" I honestly didn't care which position I tried out for, I just wanted to try out and see where that got me. I would probably just pick the one with the least amount of flying involved so I wouldn't be that uncomfortable when I got on the broomstick. So Keeper was the best choice.

But Maisie disagreed. "Keeper? You don't have the build for that position. You would work out better as a Chaser."

I shrugged again. "Okay, Chaser then. But I'm going to have to start practicing if I want any chance of making the team. I haven't ridden for a year, at most two, and I'll be absolute rubbish if I think I can just get on the field and make the team without any work. I'm sure there are people that are much better than me."

She nodded, not even bothering to encourage otherwise, or maybe not even bothering to add more to the conversation because just then Professor Slughorn walked through the door, his jolly smile enhancing his wrinkles and his eyes twinkling. He was, above all, my favorite professor at Hogwarts (Professor Longbottom right after), and his class was also my favorite. I, in his words, "had raw, natural talent" in the world of Potions. Every potion I brewed, every assignment I turned in was always "absolutely astounding."

"Good morning, class!" he said to the class, and that was when I realized it was Double-Potions today with the Slytherins. Immediately, my gaze found blonde head of Daniel, and my stomach did a flip worthy of a medal. But I made myself return my attention to Slughorn and to the potions he was standing next to. "I assume you have all heard of Amortentia?" he asked us, and a few of us, including me, nodded our heads. "Who can tell me what Amortentia does?"

Without hesitation, I raised my hand. "It's a love potion, Professor," I said clearly, remembering what my mother had told just last year during my homeschooling. "But it doesn't actually make the drinker fall in love with the target, instead it makes the drinker develop an infatuation or powerful obsession with the target. It also smells differently to different people, depending on what they are attracted to. For instance, someone in this room could smell roses and another could smell freshly cut grass."

"Very good, Miss Lawrence! Ten points to Gryffindor for that perfect explanation! Would you like to demonstrate?" he said, gesturing me towards the big potion in front of the classroom.

I walked to the front, curious as to what the potion could possibly smell like to me, and took a big whiff of the potion. Very distinct scents filled my head, almost making me dizzy but also making me incredibly happy and swoony. "I smell…Lilies, brown sugar, and…" I paused, trying to make out the last scent. "And peppermint."

"Interesting… Quite a variation, there," he said, winking as I took my seat. "Any other volunteers?"

Instantaneously, every hand in the classroom shot into the air. "Very well, very well, I will take three volunteers. Mister Potter, you may come up; you as well, Mister Parker, and same with you, Miss Sikoff."

James strutted up to the cauldron, that now familiar smug smile on his face, and he took a generous lungful of the smell. "Broomsticks, new shoes-" A few chuckled at this. "-and vanilla." He returned to his seat, smiling still but I could see a tinge of pink on his cheeks. Probably from the new shoes, but I could see how he would like that smell. Once, I'd even inhaled it for twenty minutes.

I watched Daniel smell the potion, and he smiled. "Leather, smoke, and something citrus-y… Oranges, I think."

I could feel my face burn when I heard those last words. Oranges… That was the smell of my shampoo. I grinned widely, and chanced a glance at him from across the room to see him looking at me too with the same smile. He winked before returning his attention to the front where Robin smelled the potion, and I could feel my stomach do a double flip.

"Paint, Quidditch gear, and…" She hesitated, her face incredibly red now, before continuing. "Er, and…cinnamon." She hurried back to her seat, her face looking like she just got back from a run around the Black Lake.

"And now you've learned just that much more about your classmates," Slughorn said, clapping his hands together. "Turn to page 126 in your books and you'll see the ingredients and directions for the potions. We'll be working on these for the next two classes _in partners_, so remember to get to work immediately next class! And you may begin! Oh, but before I forget – the two students that make the best potion receive a special prize at the end of our next class!"

I practically ran to the cupboard to get the ingredients, and – what a surprise here – I knocked someone over. "Oh, Merlin, why me?" I muttered, pushing myself off whoever was unfortunate enough to be crushed by me – of course, Daniel Parker.

"We really need to stop bumping into each other like this," he said, but there was a smile on his face.

"I'm so sorry," I said, jumping out of someone else's way as they hurried back to their desk with an armful of ingredients. "Did I hurt you? Are you alright? I jumped when something snapped behind us, but I ignored it, knowing somebody had probably just broke their quill.

"I'm fine, Isabelle," he assured me, chuckling at my worries. "You're as light as a feather – you can't hurt me just by falling on me. However, there is one way that you can hurt me," he said, his eyes growing softer and his voice deeper as he leaned in closer.

I gulped, realizing just how close he was but knowing that he wouldn't kiss me in the middle of class – right? No, he wouldn't. "W-What's that?" I said, trying to steady my voice but it came out shaky and breathless, as if he _had_ kissed me.

He opened his mouth to answer, but just then Slughorn clapped his hands, jerking us out of the moment. "You two are the only ones still standing over there! Get a move on! No dawdling!"

My face burned (something I realized was happening to me a lot lately), and I hurried to get my ingredients and get back to my cauldron, Daniel's words hanging in the air. I sighed, disappointed. I had been positive he would ask me out or something of the sort, but _no._ Thanks to Slughorn (who had quickly lost his spot at number one to Professor Longbottom), I would never know what Daniel had been about to say. But that was a good thing, I guess. I mean, if he had tried, I would have said yes in an instant, forgetting all about the plan we'd made. I glared at my cauldron, as I began the potion, trying to catch up with the rest of the class and forget what had just happened.

I stood, frozen and wide eyed like a possum, in front of the piece of parchment that was tacked onto the common room bulletin. Olivia was standing next to me, her eyes almost wider than mine as she stared at my moment of cold feet. Suddenly, this didn't seem like such a great idea.

"Come on, Izzy," she said, handing me the quill she'd dipped in the ink for the fourth time. "Just sign your name! I don't understand why you're freaking out now!"

My stomach seemed to be falling out of my butt. I couldn't move and I had this uncomfortable sinking feeling. I had no idea how long we'd been standing there, waiting for me to sign the stupid list of names, but I knew it had been for a _very_ long time. Every time I started to pick up the quill, I would read the title of the list, and freeze, thoughts of failing filling my head. What if I didn't make the team? What if I was rubbish? What if I was so bad, they banned me from flying? These doubts continued to swim in my head, along with even worse thoughts.

"Izzy, you can't stand here all day," Olivia told me quietly, looking around the common room hoping nobody was paying too much attention to us standing there. "Either you sign it, or I will. We both know you're a brilliant flyer, so what's the problem?"

I gulped, and glanced at her quickly, remembering the past two nights outside with her while I practiced my flying so I would be ready for this Saturday. "What if I don't make the team? I mean, I know I'm alright…but what if I'm not good enough?" When I voiced these fears aloud, I realized just how silly they sounded, and wasn't surprised when she burst out laughing, clutching her sides.

"Are…Are you _serious_?" she gasped, wiping a tear from her eye. "What if you're not good enough? Merlin, Izzy! You're better than good enough! _You're bloody brilliant!_ And if James doesn't put you on the team, that's his loss!"

I smiled, but I still wasn't as reassured as I felt I should be after that pep talk. "But…"

"No, I won't hear any more of that nonsense… Give me the bloody quill, I'll sign it for you…" she muttered, snatching the quill and signing my name quickly. "There. Now let's go – I'm starving and I will _not_ miss lunch." She grabbed my elbow and dragged me out of the common room, ignoring my protests, and headed towards the Dining Hall.

**James P.O.V.**

I hurried to my first potions class with Fred and Dobby at my heels. Professor Slughorn was in the last corridor, heading for his classroom, and we were nearly late.

"Next time," Dobby breathed, shooting a glare at Fred. "We're leaving you behind."

"Ah, come on, I didn't take that long!" Fred said, rolling his eyes just as we skidded into another corridor. "You two are just being melodramatic…"

I snorted. "Melodramatic? Us? Mate, I think you may have used a bit too much hairspray, you're brain is probably suffocating. _You_ were the one who couldn't leave the bathroom until every hair on your head had had its fair share of hairspray, leave-in conditioner, and combing."

He had no response to this except for a grunt before we entered the classroom.

"You're just lucky we got here before Slughorn," Dobby muttered as we took our seats – Fred and me in the back, and Dobby in front of us next to my cousin Robin Sikoff. Even though he always denied it, Fred and I knew Dobby was in _like_ with her, even though the poor chap could barely get up the courage to talk to her.

I spotted Isabelle across the room, talking to Maisie Coggins and occasionally giving an indifferent shrug. I almost started to yell my hello to her but in just that moment, Professor Slughorn waltzed through the door and began today's lesson, nearly knocking over someone's quill and ink bottle with his large belly.

"Good morning, class!" he said when he reached the front, and stood next to a big cauldron with spirally vapor overflowing out of it. "I assume you have all heard of Amortentia?" he asked us, and a few in the class (including Fred and I, who have, unfortunately, had bad experience in the past with the potion) nodded their heads, mostly girls, I noticed. "Who can tell me what Amortentia does?"

Out of my peripheral vision, I saw Isabelle's hand shoot into the air and her cheeks slightly flush. "It's a love potion, Professor," she said. "But it doesn't actually make the drinker fall in love with the target, instead it makes the drinker develop an infatuation or powerful obsession with the target. It also smells differently to different people, depending on what they are attracted to. For instance, someone in this room could smell roses and another could smell freshly cut grass."

"Very good, Miss Lawrence! Ten points to Gryffindor for that perfect explanation! Would you like to demonstrate?" he said, gesturing her towards the cauldron.

Everyone watched her take a big whiff of the potion. "I smell…Lilies, brown sugar, and…" She paused to determine the last scent, with that familiar, thoughtful expression on her face. "And peppermint."

"Interesting… Quite a variation, there," he said, winking at her as she sat back down. "Any other volunteers?"

Hands all around the classroom shot up, but he only chose three – Daniel, Robin, and me. I strutted up to the cauldron, smiling and anticipating what I would smell. _Probably something to do with Quidditch and food,_ I thought, almost laughing at how much that sounded like Fred, too.

I inhaled the vapor deeply, before pausing and answering. "Broomsticks, new shoes-" I heard Fred and Dobby laugh at this in the back. "-and vanilla." I knew that smell. My cheeks burned, and I knew, just_ knew_ I was probably a tomato right now, so I hurried back to my seat, hoping my smile would distract people from the fact that I was turning red.

Fred slapped me on the back when I sat down. "Nice, new shoes?" he said, chuckling while Daniel and Robin took their turns smelling the potion.

I shook my head. "Mate, I smelled vanilla. _Vanilla_," I repeated, hoping he would understand the situation. Thankfully, he did.

"James, really? I told you I called dibs," he said, his face falling.

I closed my eyes. "I don't know. Her shampoo does smell good… But I don't like her like that!" I whispered quickly when he shot me a look.

"You better not. You have to respect the rules of dibs," he said, just as Robin took her seat and Slughorn gave us the directions.

"And now you've learned just that much more about your classmates," Slughorn said, clapping his hands together. "Turn to page 126 in your books and you'll see the ingredients and directions for the potions. We'll be working on these for the next two classes _in partners_, so remember to get to work immediately next class! And you may begin! Oh, but before I forget – the two students that make the best potion receive a special prize at the end of our next class!"

Fred and I exchanged glances, thinking the same thing. We _always_ won the prizes in class. It was, I don't know, almost expected of us, what with both of us being the sons of the most famous people in the world – my parents, Harry and Ginny Potter, and his parents, Ron and Hermione Weasley. Well, it was mostly expected from our families (our very _large_ family, actually; we were cousins, thanks Ron and Ginny's five other siblings.) Hermione was the smartest witch Hogwarts had ever seen since she attended the school, Harry was the _Chosen One_ to defeat a dark wizard, Ginny was one of the most talented witches that helped in the Battle of Hogwarts, and Ron, well, he was there with the four of them (and was pretty talented himself.)

"You get the ingredients and I'll find the page!" I told Fred, just as he jumped out of his seat and hurried to get the ingredients we needed. It didn't take me long to find the page (actually, I opened right to it), and I sat there waiting for Fred to come back when I heard a _thump!_ and my head swiveled towards the ingredients cabinet.

I'm so sorry." I heard Isabelle's voice coming from somewhere on the ground, and strained my neck to see where she was. "Did I hurt you? Are you alright?" She was talking to _Daniel Parker_. The little slimeball was standing up with her now and was just mere inches apart. I could feel my temper building, but I tried to ignore it and listen to their low voices.

"I'm fine, Isabelle." He chuckled. _Chuckled_. "You're as light as a feather – you can't hurt me just by falling on me. However, there is one way that you can hurt me," he said, leaning even _closer_, and I lost it.

The quill I'd been holding snapped in two, and I let the two pieces fall onto the ground below me. I glared over them before dropping down and hastily snatching the pieces up quickly, hoping I hadn't missed anything. I realized some people were looking at me like I was crazy, and I just shook my head. "Sorry, quill broke," I muttered. They just raised their eyebrows and turned back to their potions.

I strained my ears to eavesdrop more, but then – _right on time_ – Fred threw himself into his seat, practically knocking me off of my stool and dropping everything on the table in front of us. "Alright," he said, narrowing his eyes at the book (he needed to wear glasses, but he hated them because they made him look 'dorky') and placing a finger on the first step. "So, it says here that we can use frozen Ashwinder eggs, but I couldn't find those in the cupboard so do you think-"

I cut him off by throwing my hand over his mouth and pointed towards Isabelle and Daniel and their close proximity. He glared in the prat's direction before sending me a questioning look. I just shook my head and told him to be quiet, and I tried once again to listen to the rest of their intense conversation. But I missed it. Professor Slughorn was already telling them to get back to their seats and Isabelle was already scurrying to and from the ingredients cabinet.

Fred narrowed his eyes again, but this time, not because he had 17/20 eyes. "What do you think that was all about?" he said to me under his breath, starting to heat the cauldron while Slughorn past by our table.

I shrugged, feeling myself calm back down. I had no idea why that had worked me up so much, but it actually scared me. I'd never been that angry in my life, except for once . Maybe it was because Isabelle was almost like a sister to me now? I mean, if I saw Lily that close to some guy, I would probably break more than a quill. Right? Or perhaps, it was because it was _Parker_, out of all people, who she had been so close to. I hated the boy so strongly, and ever since that day on the train when I found him trying to make a move on Isabelle, that hatred has been growing stronger. And these weren't the only two incidents that I've caught him flirting shamelessly with her.

_I walked up and down the aisles in the library, trying to find a book on Werewolves and other half breeds for my DADA homework that was due in five days, trailing a finger along the shelves and picking up dust along the way. I stopped to check one book, thinking I had found what I was looking for, but was only disappointed and continued on my way until I heard quiet voices on the other side of the bookcase._

_Now, if these were any other voices, I would have carried on with my own business, innocently looking for my book like the good student (ha!) I was. But these weren't. Instantaneously, I recognized Isabelle's soft, warm voice. She was talking to somebody, but I couldn't quite put my finger on exactly who's, so I pushed aside a couple of books (low and behold, I found my book then) and peered through them to where I estimated she was sitting._

_I could feel my blood boil, and I removed my hands from the books to prevent myself from ripping one of them because I was now clenching them in fists at my sides. She was sharing a book on half breeds with __**Daniel Parker**__. Why?! I screamed in my head, swearing someone could have heard it if they listened well enough (or close enough to my head.) And this wasn't friendly sharing either. This was full out study-flirting. Their chairs were __**less**__ than half a foot apart, and every time Isabelle went to flip the page, he 'just so happened' to reach at the same time and he 'just so happened' grazed his fingers over hers, and she would smile, biting her lip like she does when she's deep in thought but in the cute, flirty way. Whenever they would catch each other's eyes (and this was always after the finger grazing – always), he would compliment her – always. Whether it be her green eyes that reminded him of sparkling emeralds, or her mouse-brown hair that had beautiful streaks of discrete auburn and blonde when the sun from lights or the sun hit her just right, he always found something. He always found a way to make her smile or giggle._

_Oh, Merlin, why was this so aggravating for me to watch?!_

_But before I could stop myself, I marched to the end of the aisle, rounded the corner sharply, and headed towards their table, that was so conveniently by itself in the back of the library, with determination that I only recognized from Quidditch games._

"_Oh, Isabelle, I didn't realize you were here!" I said, brightly, stopping in front of them. Daniel glared at me, but I ignored him, keeping my eyes on Isabelle. "Are you working on the DADA essay? Do you mind if I join you? I'm having rotten luck finding the book I need," I said, knowing full well that it was just on the other side of the bookcase and having absolutely no clue what I was doing as I took a nearby chair and pulled it up to their table without waiting for her consent._

_She just narrowed her eyes at me, trying to figure out what I was up to, but didn't say anything about my unusual behavior (which was good because I, myself, had no answer for my unusual behavior.) "Hello, James," she said slowly, surreptitiously putting more space between her and Daniel, who made a sour face at the distance between them now. "I was just sharing the book with Daniel."_

_I widened my eyes at the blonde haired boy next to her, as if just noticing he was sitting with us. "Parker! I didn't realize you were here!"_

_He glared at me. "Potter," he said, almost sneering, but giving me a curt nod._

_I looked back at Isabelle, who was now noticeably farther away from Parker. Her gaze was hard, and the 'sparkling emeralds' Daniel had seen earlier were most definitely gone. "James? Could I speak to you? __**Alone**__," she said quietly, nodding towards a bookshelf opposite to the one I'd spied them from._

_I merely shrugged, and followed her behind the bookshelf without a word. I knew I was in for it now. I'd come to learn how she works – emotionally. When she's happy, she usually hums a song (almost always a Christmas song, for some odd reason) and is much more talkative. When she's tired, she is more prone to hitting you if you rub her the wrong way (figuratively speaking, of course) and just snaps answers here and there. When she's sad, she usually just stares into space and it will sometimes take up to five minutes to get her attention. And when she's angry (like she is now), she stomps to her destination but never yells. She speaks quietly and slowly, and most would say that's scarier than her yelling – most including me._

_Once on the other side of the bookcase, she rounded on me, her pupils huge from her anger and crossing her arms tightly across her chest. "What. Is. Your. Problem?" she seethed, giving me a look that could kill._

_I gulped, trying to keep my cool under her gaze. "Problem?" I said, hoping I didn't sound too scared. "I don't know what you're talking about, Izzy. I just needed to share your book with you – and it looks like Parker, now, too…"_

_Her eyes flashed. "So that's what this is about?" she hissed. "Daniel, right? Look, I know you hate him and you can't stand him, but please, for me, don't mess this up for me."_

"_Mess this up for you…?" I trailed off quizzically, until it hit me and it was like a light bulb popped up above my head. "Mess this up for you as in… You like him."_

"_Yes, James, I really do. So, if you mind, I'd like to try having my first real boyfriend," she said, quietly, uncrossing her arms and propping one up on her hip._

_Something (that something that holds you together? The one that keeps you sane, you know?) broke inside of me, and I felt anger so powerful that it almost knocked me off my feet. I just looked at her, wondering to myself why this bothered me so much. Probably because I felt bad for Fred. Yes, that was it. Fred was nearly head over heels for this girl, and now I had to be the one that had to tell him she was interested in that…__**that**__. "Why __**him?**__" I nearly spat the last word, but kept my saliva in my mouth._

"_Why him?" she repeated, as if she was surprised that I asked the question. "Why… Because he's nice to me! He's sweet, caring, understanding, smart… So much! Why __**not**__ him?!" She didn't yell any of this; she whisper-yelled. She never yelled, something I would never understand._

_I shook my head, rubbing the bridge of my nose. "He's __**scum**__, Isabelle. Of course he's all of that – he's playing you. Do you think I haven't heard plenty other girls whispering the same things about him in class?" And I thought this would get her to see reason, to see what Parker really was._

_But she didn't. No, instead, she stood straighter and actually __**defended**__ the bloke. "He's not like that anymore," she said, and I thought I heard the tiniest bit of hesitation in her voice, as if she was trying to convince me as much as herself but then it was gone with the next words. "He told me himself. He told me he used to go through girls like a five hundred pound man goes through a lifetime's supply of hamburgers. But now that he's met me, he's changing his ways."_

_I nearly burst out laughter after that, but was able to contain my laughter – except for a snort. "Changing his ways? You really buy that B.S? I thought you were smarter than that!"_

_The glare was gone. I don't know what was there now, but it was sent shivers down my back. It was some kind of scowl, but then again it was a straight face. It was mostly coming from her eyes. Damn, I thought. Those eyes are lethal…_

"_Do you really think," she started with a low voice, "that I would let it go that easily? Do you really think I'm __**that**__ easy?" I didn't say anything, knowing full well that whatever I did say would be wrong. Even my silence was the wrong answer. "Well, if you really think that, then I have some news for you, James – I told him I won't date him unless I was sure, so he hasn't dated anyone for a week now-"_

"_A week?" I said, feigning shock. "That's a record! He deserves a medal, now, doesn't he?"_

"_-and won't be for the next month," she finished, glaring at my last comment._

_I shook my head. "Merlin, Isabelle, is he really worth all that trouble?" I said quietly. "I mean, why couldn't you have chosen someone __**decent**__? Like, why not Fred or somebody?"_

"_I don't want to date Fred!" she hissed, stomping a foot. "I want to date-"_

"_Er, sorry, to interrupt." Parker appeared at the end of the aisle, eyeing me with so much hatred, I was almost impressed. "But I really need to get going, Isabelle… Head duties."_

_Her eyes softened incredibly fast when she looked at him, and I nearly slapped her to knock her out of it. "Oh, alright, Daniel. I'll see you tomorrow, same time?"_

_He nodded. "Do you want me to help clean up?"_

"_No, no, I'll do it," she said, waving his offer off._

"_Okay, I'll see you tomorrow, then." He nodded, smiling softly at her before departing and shooting me one more glare._

_I turned around to continue our argument, but she was gone. I looked around and saw her disappearing around the corner and heading back to her table. "Isabelle!" I whispered, running after her._

"_I'm done talking about this, James," she murmured, shutting the book with a bit too much force and searching for the shelf it belonged on._

_I stood where I was, watching her trace her fingers on the shelves looking for the book's spot, not understanding why I was trying to stop her. It really wasn't any of my business, so what was my problem? Fred would be fine. Right? And she didn't look anywhere near giving in and seeing reason, so what was the point?_

"_Fine, I'll see you in the common room, later, then…" I muttered, leaving the area and soon the library._

I shook my head, realizing the memory was bringing back the anger and I didn't want to break any more things. I glanced across the room at her, watching her as she and Maisie began putting in ingredients. She must have felt my gaze because she turned slightly in her seat and smiled and waved. I waved out of habit back, but then I realized there was no eye contact. I turned to look in the direction she was smiling, and nearly punched Fred.

Instead, I just whispered quickly to him and he smiled, agreeing to my proposal.

First target of Seventh Year: Daniel Parker.


	4. Murderous Nightmares

**Of Love and War**

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**The Eighth Horcrux  
By xxbubblelovexx**

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**Author's Note ~ Okay, so I got all of the chapters fixed and up quicker than I thought I would... They're mostly the same, just a few adjustments (barely noticeable though.) The most evident probably would be: instead of Hugo Weasley, we now have Fred Weasley II; and Orion Black has left the picture too, and in his place would be Dobby Longbottom, Neville Longbottom's son. I'm pretty sure that's all of them.**

**And, as a present to all of my readers, I decided to put Chapter 3 up too! Lucky ducks... :P I hope you like it! Not as long as my others, obviously. I'm trying to cut back on the length, so I'm hoping this is an okay length.**

**Well, okay, I'll stop talking and let you get to the story :) Enjoy.**

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**Chapter 3 - Murderous Nightmares**

**Isabelle P.O.V.**

_I walked down a narrow, dark hallway. I'd never been here before, but it was familiar and I somehow knew the way to my destination – whatever that was. My breath was shallow as I took slow steps down the hall towards a big double door, my legs shaky and about to give from under me. There something in my gut that was telling me to turn around, to run, but I ignored it, my curiosity having the upper hand._

_Hissing started up all around – in the walls, below my bare feet, next to my ears, right behind me, and behind the door was heading too. _Snakes_, I thought, feeling an urge bolt, but my legs weren't cooperating. It was like they weren't even my legs anymore. Something else was controlling them, like a different mind. I had no control over my body._

"_Open…the door…" hissed one of the walls, and I obliged without hesitation, grasping one of the cold knobs in my shaky hand and pushing it open._

_It was a dark, round room – twice the size of the Gryffindor common room – with a cauldron right in the middle. The only light was coming from a skylight, which the moon was shining through as a beam directly onto the cauldron. I couldn't see anything else except for the cauldron, no matter how hard I squinted to see along the edges of the room._

_I stepped forward – or, should I say, my feet stepped forward – and waited. For what, I didn't know, but I was waiting. I stood there, stiff and cold, wondering if my bare feet would fall off from frostbite. I could see myself from what I must look like from the outside – eyes dark and drained of all green, hair stick-straight unlike my usual curls – and I became even more curious. Something was off, different, __**wrong**__, and it was killing me not knowing what it was, how to stop it. But then I heard footsteps, and I was returned back to my body._

_A door squeaked open from the opposite side of the room, but I didn't flinch or move a muscle as whoever's footsteps drew closer to where I stood. I didn't feel frightened in the least bit, like I should have been. Instead, I stood there, my mind somehow already knowing who the person was._

"_Isabelle…" someone whispered from a few feet away. "I'm so glad to see that you came…"_

"_Of course, I came, Uncle Tom," my mouth said, smiling towards the direction of the man's slithery voice. It was my uncle. Uncle Tom! But…this room looked nothing like his house, so where could we possibly be? "But why am I here?"_

"_I have…a request," he said, and suddenly his voice was right behind me but I did not turn._

"_Yes?"_

"_You have heard…of James Potter, I presume," he rasped._

"_I'm friends with him, Uncle."_

_Cold air blew past me. "I…I would like…to meet him…soon…"_

"_Of course, Uncle," I said, slightly surprised that he was taking such an interest in my friends – or friend to be exact. "But…why him? Wouldn't you like to meet my other friends also?"_

"_No, no… Just James would be fine… James Potter…"_

_Realization dawned on me, and I smiled inwardly. "Because he's the son of the Chosen One?" I guessed._

"_The Chosen One…" It was almost like he spat the name. "No, I am merely just…interested in the boy… I would love to meet him."_

"_Okay, Uncle," I said. "Would you like to meet him over Winter Break? I could invite him over for a few days?"_

"_That would be…an excellent plan, my young Isabelle," he said, his voice scratchy now. He was an old man, and it was always hard for him to talk too much._

"_Oh, Uncle, you need to rest," I said, but slowly everything was disappearing behind a mist and suddenly I was dropped onto something._

_Standing up and looking around, I saw tiny shops with people inside. There was one with a sign over it that said the Three Broomsticks, and I started towards it without giving my legs the okay. The wind was blowing, whipping my hair all around my face and icy snow was slicing my face. I bent my head against the wind as I trudged to the Three Broomsticks, wrapping my arms around myself to stay warm._

_The door chimed when I stepped in. I didn't recognize any of the faces because they were so hazy, so I walked past everyone, even when they called my name and begged me to come back. I just kept moving my legs to the bar, where two men were sitting. I could tell who one of them was – James Potter. His face was contorted from what looked like anger. The two seemed to be having a heated conversation, and I almost stayed back to wait for James to see me, but I could tell something wasn't right. In no time at all, the anger on his face had been replaced with pure agony, and he was suddenly on the floor, writhing in pain._

"_JAMES!" I screamed, running over to where he was lying. His body was distorting itself in different positions, and I tried to calm him down, but it was like he had no idea I was there. I bit my lip, trying to hold my tears back, and turned to the man who was also there._

_He was in a dark cloak, his head covered by hood and I couldn't see his face. A dark, evil laugh erupted from where the man stood, sending a shiver down my spine, and he lifted his wand higher. My heart skipped a beat. This man was causing James this much pain. He was using an Unforgivable on him – the Cruciatus Curse._

"_Stop it!" I cried, reaching for my own wand but finding nothing but empty air. So I settled for the Muggle way – I ran at him. But I hit something, an invisible wall blocking me from him, and flew backwards._

"_Hello, Isabelle," a strange hiss came from the hood, and my eyes widened. "Came to bid your farewells to your love? How…__**touching**__," the voice drawled, jabbing their wand in the air which resulted in James screaming and begging for death._

"_Leave him alone!" I begged, tears now falling down my cheeks. "Stop hurting him!"_

"_Or did you come to join me?" he continued on, raising his voice. "Like you should have done months ago?!"_

_I watched as James' eyes rolled to the back of his head and his body begin some kind of seizure. "Stop…!" I tried to yell, but my voice was hoarse and I was losing my sight. "You're going to…kill him…"_

"_Of course I am, silly girl," the man hissed, standing up abruptly and striding over to where I sat crying. "But you can't give me all the credit, can you?"_

_I looked at him questioningly, trying to keep up. "Stop…hurting him…"_

"_Ah, but I'm not the one hurting him, sweet Isabelle," he said wickedly, and suddenly his wand was gone._

_My eyes shot open, and I looked over to James, hoping he was okay now. He wasn't._

_He was still in pain._

_Still begging for death._

_I looked down at my hands, horror seizing me._

_I was gripping my wand firmly in my hand, pointing straight at my friend. I was using the Cruciatus on my friend. I was hurting my friend._

"_AVADA KADAVRA!"_

_James body fell limp on the floor, his eyes open. He was gone._

_I killed my friend._

_I killed James Potter._

I swung myself forward, gasping for air. I was covered in sweat, and my hair was falling on one side of my head.

"Isabelle…?" someone's voice on my right said quietly, their voice muffled. "Is that you?"

Trying to catch my breath and get those vivid images out of my head, I looked over to Maisie's bed where she was sitting up and yawning. I closed my eyes, calming my heart and letting myself breathe normally before speaking. "Er, yeah, Maisie…"

"What are you doing awake?" she said, eyeing me curiously.

"I… Bad dream…" I said quietly, and just by saying it, the dream came back. The flash of green light. James' cries for death. His limp body. Fear gripped me just by remembering it. "It was so real…"

She looked at me pitifully, and climbed onto my bed from hers. "Do you want to talk about it?"

I smiled, but shook my head. I didn't want to think about it more than I had to, and I didn't want my nightmare to be a burden for her. What I dreamt wasn't meant for other ears. It was something I had to keep to myself, no matter how much it scared me. "No, I'm fine, really… Just gave me a scare…"

"Well, alright, then…" she said, slowly leaving my bed with a slightly worried, slightly relieved, slightly tired expression. "If you're sure you don't want to talk about it…"

"I'm sure…"

"Then I guess I'll go back to…to sleep," she said through a yawn before resting her head on her pillow. Soon enough, I heard her deep breathing and quiet snores, and I knew she had fallen asleep again.

I sighed, wrapping my arms around my legs and pulling them close, as if trying to keep myself together. My eyes were wide, staring into space, remembering the nightmare all over again. And I couldn't close my eyes because whenever I did, the green flash of light was always there waiting for me and after that would come James, limp and vulnerable and _gone_.

Because of me.

What kind of dream is that? Dreaming of murdering someone… Isn't that something a sadist would dream about? Was there something wrong with me? I killed James, my friend! Why, oh, why would I ever _dream_ of inflicting pain on him, and, even more, _murdering_ him. I was sick. I was a sick, mental teenager.

I sat in the Dining Hall, staring blankly at my waffles and blueberries, with Maisie beside me and Robin and Olivia sitting across from us. I'd been sitting there since we came in ten minutes ago, picking at my food and staring at it. I hadn't gone back to sleep after I woke up after my dream last night, I was tired, and I still couldn't stop seeing the green flash. _Stop it,_ I reprimanded myself. _It was just a dream. That's all. None of it was real._

"Izzy…? Are you feeling well?" Olivia asked me, looking at me apprehensively. "You look a little green…"

I gulped and looked up at her. "Sorry, what?"

She raised one brow. "I said you look a little green."

Oh. "Oh… Oh, no, I feel fine-just-fine," I said, hoping my smile (no matter how forced it was) would back me up.

She looked at me curiously, but didn't press the issue because suddenly there was a frenzy of flapping. I looked up, and smiled (a genuine one, this time.)

Owl Post.

I saw my owl, Nilla, swooping down towards where I sat, holding the Daily Prophet (as usual) but something else too. A small envelope. As soon as she dropped before me and let her have my blueberries, I ripped open the letter, trying to control my excitement. I never got letters. Never. Only if my mother had something important to share with me, but other than that…never.

Dear Isabelle,

I hope you remember to invite James over during the holidays. It would be a pleasure to finally meet famous Harry Potter's son.

Sincerely,

Uncle Tom

I reread the letter twice, trying to comprehend the words. No. This wasn't… My eyes widened. My dream… How was it possible…?

I heard Maisie gasp from beside me. She was holding my Daily Prophet in front of her face, reading the recent news, and her jaw had dropped.

"Attacks…" she gasped, clutching her heart. "_Two_ attacks in London on Muggles."

Robin and Olivia just stared at her, fear and shock evident in their huge eyes. The rest of the Dining Hall had gotten incredibly quieter too, as if everyone read the same thing at the same time. Except for me. I was still staring at my letter, almost completely oblivious to the rest of the world.

"Let me read it," Robin said, taking the paper out of Maisie's still hands. _"Last night at 11:42PM, two muggles on the streets of London were attacked due to magic. One muggle, female, age 21, was severely injured by the use of the Cruciatus curse. The other, male, age 19, fared better but is also severely injured from a mild Sectumsempra curse. Both are in St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, and are expected to be out in the next four weeks and will have their memory modified, as will the families._

"_Aurors do not have any evidence as to who is/are responsible for this attack, but are confident that they will find them."_ Robin looked up from the paper, horrified, and her expression was a mirror of many others in the Dining Hall.

"Muggle attack…" Olivia whispered, as if she was still trying to believe it. "But…"

"Who would do such a thing…?" Maisie said, staring at her food now.

I tuned them out, and returned to my letter. This wasn't happening. It was a _dream._ It wasn't real! I couldn't have possibly actually talked to my uncle. Not in my sleep, not while I was in Hogwarts.

But I obviously had. The proof was evident in my shaky hands. But if that part of the dream was true then…

My heart stopped and I looked up and down the Gryffindor table for familiar messy brown hair. It wasn't anywhere. Neither were his friends.

"Excuse me," I muttered quickly to my friends, before jumping up and hurrying out of the Dining Hall.

My heart was beating a million beats an hour and I couldn't calm down. My mind was racing, trying to reason with myself. Just because one part of my dream became true, doesn't really mean the last part was…right? _But why wouldn't it? The other dream was already proved true,_ a voice (I'm not crazy – yet) said in the back of my mind. I nearly passed out when I remembered James' limp body in the Leaky Cauldron, my breath hitching, but I couldn't. I had to make sure he was okay. I had to find him. I gulped down air and ran even faster (if possible), the air rushing past my ears and my footsteps the only sounds in the empty corridors, to the Gryffindor common room.

I rounded a corner, and, because of my distraction of my fears, I ran into something and fell backwards on the floor. "Oof!" I grunted, just as my head cracked against the stone floor. I winced as the pain shot through my body and the spot hit began to throb, but I tried to shake it off and see who I ran into.

Across from me, a small girl was sprawled on the floor, rubbing her head, and groaning. Cursing, I stood up quickly to help her up and noticed her dark red hair. "Lily?" I said, still breathing hard from my sprinting.

She blinked and took my hand. "Er, yes?" she mumbled, then looked at me and comprehension dawned on her. "Oh! Isabelle! I-I…" she trailed off nervously, her eyes darting around us and smiling awkwardly.

I smiled, half-heartedly. "Sorry, I was in a hurry to…" I trailed off, realizing just who I was talking to. Lily Potter. James' sister, Lily Potter. "Oh! Lily! Have you seen James at all this morning?" I asked, my hope clear in my voice.

She raised a brow. "Not since last night when he told me he and the guys were sneaking out to Hogsmeade for drinks…"

I froze. _No…this can't be happening!_ I screamed in my head, pushing past Lily without another word and headed for the One Eyed Witch statue. It was one the passage ways to Hogsmeade that James had shown me a couple of weeks ago when I caught him in the common room with a weird map – the Marauder's Map. He had been so flustered when I snuck up on him that he had no choice but to show it to me, and we spent an hour or so talking about the secret passage ways.

"_Dissendium,_" I breathed, tapping the hump and scrambling in, falling head first. "Ouch…" I whimpered. Second time already, and I hadn't even started class today.

I froze again. _Class!_ It had completely slipped my mind in my race to find James. _James…!_ He was more important at the moment – his life was more important. Professor Slughorn would just have to wait (but hopefully Maisie would make something up for me so I wasn't that late…)

I ran, full speed ahead, to the end of the passage where I snuck out of Honeydukes. I hadn't ever been to Hogsmeade before, so I had no idea where anything was and spent fifteen minutes going in the wrong direction. When I did get directions from a kind lady working in one of the small shops, I ran as fast as possible to the Three Broomsticks, the wind whipping my face and curls.

The bell above the door chimed when I walked through. It was slightly crowded, and I had to stand on my tiptoes to look over heads (I'm not that tall, really – only 5'3") to find the bar where he had been in the dream. But I kept getting bumped into by people who were leaving or taking a seat with their drinks or walking to chat to someone. I cursed under my breath, and decided to just go to the side of the room where it was less dense, grabbed a stool, and stood on it to search for a bar.

When I found it, I nearly died of joy. There occupying four stools were the Marauders II – Dobby twirling in his seat next to Jared who was clinking glasses with Fred who had messy dark head sleeping on his right. James.

I ran – really _ran_ – towards the four.

"Isabelle!" Fred called when he saw me running towards them, and raised his arms for a hug. "You came to join the party!"

I ignored him, going straight for James, and enveloping him in the biggest hug I have ever given.

He spluttered, trying to get out of my grasp but when he realized it was me, he relaxed (sort of.) "Er, Isabelle?" he said uncertainly, and awkwardly patting me on the back.

I hugged him even tighter until someone tapped me on the shoulder. "What about my hug?" I heard Fred whine from behind. I rolled my eyes and let go of James.

"Oh my god, you don't know how much you scared me!" I said, slapping him on the arm. "You git, what are you doing here still? Have you four really been here all night?"

His eyes widened in alarm, and he rubbed his arm. "Bloody hell, Izzy! What's the matter? We just had a guy's night, that's all! Crazy…"

I glared and started to open my mouth but stopped just before the words toppled out. What was I going to say? _Oh, I've been thinking this whole time that you were dead because I had this really weird dream that I killed you with my very own wand after torturing you until near death._ Oh yeah, that won't make me sound sadistic and psychotic at all. I bit my lower lip nervously and looked up at him. His stance was slightly shaky, and I suspected that he was buzzed. In fact, I had this feeling that they all were. Especially Fred.

"Er, just…just worried, that's all," I said quietly, my face starting to burn. Thankfully, they were all drunk enough not to notice my white-lie. "What are you guys doing? It's nearly time for classes to start!" I narrowed my eyes at them, hoping this would get us onto a different subject.

"Bloody hell!" Fred gasped, eyes wide. "We missed breakfast!"

I rolled my eyes. "What were you thinking? Drinking and staying out late on a school night… You dolts…" I muttered, leading them out of the bar while they cheerfully said their goodbyes to the other customers.

My dream haunted me for the rest of the day. No, I didn't think it was real. It was obviously just that – a dream. But it was how real it had seemed that scared me, and that was what followed me throughout all of my classes. Every time I saw James, I saw his dead form on the floor in the Three Broomsticks. I just counted myself lucky that it hadn't come true, unlike the other one.

_The other one…_ That one had come true. My uncle moving all around me, once at my side and once standing directly in front of me; the cauldron that seemed so familiar now that I thought about it; the cold floor was also familiar. The dream came rushing back to the front of my mind, and fear clutched my heart. For some reason, I felt terrified. Terrified that my uncle had shown such an odd interest in my friend. Terrified that my uncle had been able to contact me through my dreams. It just didn't seem right, but as soon as the fear came, it was gone, swept away by my common sense. I had no reason to be afraid. So what if he could contact me without an owl? He was an extraordinary wizard, one of the best I knew. It really wasn't surprising that he would want to try something like that.

So I tried to forget about it for the rest of the day (successfully, I might add), up until my Defense Against the Dark Arts class with Professor Wingheart.

"Occlumency," the large woman said, walking swiftly past our desks to the front where a large blackboard stood by itself. She looked at us all with her narrowed eyes, waiting for an answer that was obviously never going to come. "Well?" she snapped, slapping a hand on a nearby desk, making its occupier jump slightly. "No one? Not _one_ of you can tell me what kind of magic this is? Not even the Chosen One's own son?"

I saw James redden slightly out of the corner of my eye, but he said nothing.

"How about Legilimency?" She looked around the classroom with a disdainful sniff.

"Its mindreading, Professor," someone said from the back, breaking the silence of the class. We all were relieved someone had spoken. At least now we wouldn't have to face the wrath of Professor Wingheart, one of the meanest Professors at Hogwarts (actually, the only mean Professor at Hogwarts – the others were actually decent.)

But she snorted, shaking her head at the answer. "Mindreading… Only naïve children like you would think something so simple… Only children of this generation, the ones who didn't deal with the dark days of my era, would think something so innocent," she jeered. "Leglimency is…the act of penetrating one's mind, sifting through the many layers of the mind, interpreting their feelings correctly. It is dark magic that was used often by Lord Voldemort to delve into the minds of his victims, create unimaginable pain in their minds, get them to the point of begging for death. Only then would he kill them."

The class was silent, listening intently to her every word. All of our faces mirrored the same feeling – pure horror at the thought of something so cruel.

She turned to the blackboard and began scratching the chalk across it. _Occlumency,_ it read in big letters.

"But…But, Professor," a girl near the front spoke up, raising a timid hand. "You won't be teaching us Occlumency, will you? It was banned by the Ministry to be taught in class years ago."

"To hell with what the Ministry says!" the big-boned lady cried, throwing a piece of chalk on the floor in rage. "Occlumency needs to be taught to each and every one of you. Just because the darkest wizard the world has ever seen was killed, doesn't mean there aren't still others, others just as twisted as he was, that want to use your minds to their advantage, to their own pleasure! Extremely advanced Legilimens can make you see even see things, things that aren't there, make you believe something is true. Perhaps make you see your dear mother on her death bed… Your friends planning against you, admitting their deep hatred for you… Or even you, yourself, killing someone dear to you with your own bare hands. You are and always have been their greatest weapon; once they have you in their grasp, you are their puppet. That is unless you can fight back.

"I say, the Ministry and Hogwarts has eased up too much on its students," she said, her voice low so we all had to strain our ears to hear her. "In the blink of an eye, everything could change, and I'll bet none of you can even conjure up a Patronus, am I right?" She waited, but no one raised their hands. "How about a decent Vanishing Spell? Ennervate Spell?" No answer. She huffed. "You lot are a pathetic bunch of seventh years. It looks like we have a lot of work ahead of us this year, don't we?

"Occlumency," she continued, pacing back and forth at the front. "The act of magically closing one's mind and preventing Legilimens from accessing any of one's thoughts, memories, feelings…perhaps even influencing them. Get a quill and parchment, we're taking notes today…" she ordered, snapping her fingers while the class grabbed their supplies hurriedly. "Any idea how one accomplishes this? Hah, nevermind, what a silly question to ask this class…" She shook her head in disappointment. "You empty your mind of all feelings, thoughts, everything. You should have nothing. This prevents Legilimens from extracting any thoughts from your mind, as long as you continue this. So, does anybody want to take a guess as to how an advanced Occlumens blocks only certain thoughts, making the Legilimens believe what they are saying even if it is a lie?..."

I was slightly in a trance throughout dinner. DADA had been slightly…well, slightly depressing, a bit shocking, absolutely horrifying, and an answer (maybe.) Legilimency. It must be what my uncle had used to enter my dreams. How else could he have possibly done it? But if that was true, then I was also slightly doubtful. My uncle was an old, frail man, once an extraordinary wizard, but even back in his old days, not even he could have accomplished something so tough. For one, we were miles and miles away – how could he have reached my mind from so far away? Professor Wingheart did say that looking in the person's eyes made it easier too. And second, how could he have done something so advanced as to make me believe we were in a room together, talking? That must be something only the most talented Legilimens could succeed.

I tried and tried all throughout dinner and late into the night to come to a conclusion, but this only mixed up my thoughts and reason and questions even more, and soon, at what must have been nearly one in the morning, I could barely think a coherent thought.


End file.
